22 August 1961 · Window jumps · Bernauer Straße
Ida Siekmann, first death at the Berlin Wall
Nine days after the border was sealed, 58-year-old Ida Siekmann jumped from her third-floor window onto the West Berlin pavement and died of her injuries.
Ida Siekmann, born in 1902, lived alone in a third-floor flat at Bernauer Straße 48. Her building was in East Berlin, but the pavement in front of it belonged to West Berlin.
The day before her escape she watched the entrance of her building being barricaded. Early on the morning of 22 August 1961, at about 6:50 a.m., she threw bedding and belongings out of the window and then jumped.
She was badly injured and died on the way to the nearby Lazarus Hospital, one day before her 59th birthday. The Chronik der Mauer counts her as the first fatality at the Wall. The district of Wedding put up a memorial at the spot in September 1961, and a memorial stone stands in Bernauer Straße today.
Sources
Whose account is this? Drawn from a GDR record and historical research.
GDR records
- Stab. Präsidium der Volkspolizei Berlin – Abt. Information – Journal der Handlung, 22. August 1961Chronik der Mauer (document: Landesarchiv Berlin, C Rep. 303/26.1/239)
Historians and memorials
- Siekmann, IdaChronik der Mauer
- Die Bernauer StraßeStiftung Berliner Mauer
- Mahnmal Ida Siekmann in der Bernauer StraßeStiftung Berliner Mauer (Sammlung)
- Segler, OlgaChronik der Mauer
Facts checked against the sources: September 2026
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Cite this page
Berlin Experiences, “Ida Siekmann, first death at the Berlin Wall”, Berlin Wall Escapes, 2026, https://berlinwallescapes.com/escapes/ida-siekmann-bernauer-strasse-48/ (accessed [date]).
Related escapes
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Rudolf Urban's rope descent from Bernauer Straße 1
Rudolf Urban and his wife let themselves down on a rope from their first-floor flat; he was badly injured and died in hospital four weeks later.
25 September 1961
Olga Segler's jump into the fire brigade net
Encouraged by her daughter waiting below, 80-year-old Olga Segler jumped from her second-floor window into a fire brigade net. She died the next day.
20 August 1961
Out of the window at the Brunnenstraße corner
At about 10.50 a.m. on 20 August 1961 two people left their flat on Bernauer Street at the Brunnenstraße corner through the windows and reached West Berlin.
20 August 1961
A married couple climbs out at the Wolliner Straße corner
At about 11 a.m. on 20 August 1961 a married couple escaped through the windows of their flat at the corner of Bernauer Straße and Wolliner Straße.
